Medics from Gasthuisberg hospital in Leuven, where the wounded are being treated, said their injuries are consistent with at least one of the bombs being packed with nails before it was set of.

Police are hunting a man wearing a white jacket and black hat caught on CCTV camera at Zaventem Airport, where 14 people were killed.

Surveillance footage captured shortly before the blast this morning shows him arriving with two accomplices, believed to be dead, both of whom are wearing gloves covering their left hands, pushing suitcase trolleys laden with luggage.

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The men police want to speak to in connection with the Brussels attacks

Zaventem mayor Francis Vermeiren claimed the suicide attackers were hiding bombs in luggage aboard their trolleys. It is believed they arrived at the airport by taxi.

But police have issued a wanted notice for the man in white, while it is thought the two men in black died after detonating suicide devices.

During the aftermath of the attacks, police carried out a number of raids across Belgium. An ISIS flag, chemicals, a bomb and an explosive device containing nails were found during a house search.

A Belgian news agency also reported witnesses had said they heard gunshots and shouts of Arabic at the time of the airport explosions.

Two kalashnikov assault rifles were also found in the airport lounge.

Two men were later arrested a mile away from the Maelbeek metro station at around 11am, some two hours after the blasts tore the train apart.

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Fears are growing for missing David Dixon

A spokesman for David Cameron confirmed two Britons are among the injured and advised Britons to avoid all but essential travel to Brussels.

Fears are also growing for missing Briton David Dixon, who is believed to have been on the Metro system at the time of the deadly blast.

Mr Dixon, orginally from Hartepool, has not been in contact with his partner Charlotte Louise Sutcliffe since leaving for work this morning.

He lives and works in the Belgian capital and did not arrive at work today.

Meanwhile, there are said to be nine Americans among the victims.

Three Mormon missionaries from Utah and a US Air Force member and his family are thought to be among those hurt in the deadly bomb attacks in Brussels, government and church officials said.

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Two blasts happened on a metro near the European Parliament

Weapons have been found at the blast site at Zaventem airport, according to a Belgian news agency. The information has not yet been confirmed by an official source.

Three explosive devices have been recovered at the airport, including a suicide belt which failed to detonate, according to Belgian media.

A third bomb found at the airport was destroyed by security services, the Brussels provincial governor said.

One explosion took place near the Brussels Airlines check-in desk while the other bomb detonated near the American Airlines check-in at around 8am this morning.

It has since emerged German officers arrested three people in a car with a Belgian license plate near the border with Austria before the terror attack. They have now launched an investigation into whether they had planned to carry out an attack.

The three suspects from Kosovo were arrested on a motorway in the southern state of Bavaria after receiving an intelligence tip-off.

A spokesman said: "Investigations have been launched into the suspected planning of a serious criminal act against the state because there was notification of that."

Alphonse Youla, who was close to the Brussels Airlines area when the bombs detonated, said: "I saw a woman near the escalator near the arrivals area. She looked as though she had been cut in two by the explosion.

"I got five people out. They were injured or dead. I pulled out two policemen with crushed legs. There were a lot of injured, especially people with severed legs. I was under a lot of shock."

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People run from the airport after the explosions

The large explosions have taken out glass windows at the entrance and much of the airport's ceiling has collapsed.

A Belgian flag has been put alongside the Union Jack outside No.10 in Downing Street and all flags on government buildings will be at half-mast.

It is an example of the terrible injuries sustained by victims of today’s separate explosions across the city.

The metal object was identified in the x-ray taken at the Military Hospital in Neder-over-Heembeek in the north of the Belgian capital.

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This shocking image shows a nail embedded into a victims chest

The metro station targeted by the terrorists is near the European Union (EU) headquarters.

There are now fears of several coordinated attacks across the city and the entire metro system has been shut down.

The Belgian prosecutor's office has now confirmed the attacks are suicide bombs.

The Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel has slammed the attacks as "blind, violent, cowardly" and has warned of more terror attacks.

Mr Michel added: "We were feared an attack and it's happened."

The Belgian leader said it was "a dark day for Belgium" and that his "thoughts go out to the victims and their families".

The French President François Hollande has called for "European unity" after the atrocities.French Prime Minister Manuel Valls said: "We are at war".

Countries across Europe are tightening security following the attacks.

Emergency services are still searching for fatalities and injured in the rubble at both scenes.

There are unconformed reports that a bomb had been placed next to an American Airline check-in desk.

Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel has posted on Twitter: "We are following the situation minute by minute. The absolute priority is for the victims and people who were at the airport."

French minister of the interior Bernard Cazeneuve has said an extra 1,600 security forces and police will be deployed on the streets in France which is also under a high terror alert.

Police in Britain are also stepping up security at key locations across the country.

Belgian authorities have closed the metro in the capital of Brussels following the explosions.

The blasts occurred four days after the arrest in Brussels of Salah Abdeslam, suspected of being involved in November's Paris massacre that left 130 people dead and more than 300 injured.

Abdeslam's accomplice Najim Laacheaoui, who was in hiding with the Paris terrorist in the Brussels district of Molenbeek, is still on the run.

Belgian police had been on alert for any reprisal action.

The Mayor of Paris Anne Hidalgo has announced the Eiffel Tower will be lit up with the colours of the Belgian flag this evening to honour the victims of the attacks.

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Injured passengers at Brussels airport

Social media showed pictures of smoke rising from the departure hall where all windows had been shattered by the blast. Passengers were seen running away down a slipway from the departure lounge.

Rudi Vervoot, the president of the Brussels region, said: "There has been an explosion in the airport. An emergency plan will certainly be activated."

A witness said: "I was in the check-in queue and I heard an explosion. I saw smoke, I saw people panicking and running towards the exit. There was a second explosion much closer to me.

"Everyone left the airport in panic, most people left their baggage."

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The airport is filled with smoke after the blast

Sources at the scene spoke of hearing two "very, very loud explosions".

He said: "I could feel the building move. There was also dust and smoke as well...I went towards where the explosion came from and there were people coming out looking very dazed and shocked.

"The thinking here is that it is some kind of terrorist attack - that hasn't been verified by any of the authorities here at the airport."

Witnesses have described feeling the ground rock and seeing dust coming from the ceiling.

The attacks come four days after Paris attacks suspect Salah Abdeslam was captured by Belgian commandos after spending four months on the run.

Abdesalam played a key role in organising the Paris November 13 attacks in which 130 people were massacred, but he lost his nerve when it came to detonating his suicide belt – instead dumping it in a bin and making a run for it.

Speaking at the German Marshall Fund’s forum he said the terrorist was "ready to start something" in Brussels.

He said: "We found a lot of weapons, heavy weapons in the first investigations, and we have seen a new network of people around him in Brussels."

Belgium has raised the terror level to its maximum for all airports in the region of Flanders.

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A dramatic image from inside the airport shows the chaos

All transport in the city was shut down and trains will remain out of service tomorrow, while international trains to Brussels have been cancelled, including Eurostar services which have been suspended until further notice.

Shops, commercial centres and certain schools and universities have been closed as a precaution while others are being guarded by security forces.

The EU areas and institutional buildings, which are close to the Metro station, have also been closed. Terror alerts have been raised at parliamentary and EU institutions.

Police are carrying out spot-checks on people and cars.

Telephone lines are down and authorities are advising people to use social media to contact loved ones.

The Belgian Prime Minister has urged residents to avoid any movement from their current location.

Belgian MP Georges Dallemagne had just dropped his wife off at the airport when she heard the "massive explosions" and the roof caved in.

He said: "I dropped her off around 7.40am this morning, and she called me to say that there were explosions around 7.58am.

"She ran away immediately, in a state of shock, towards the Sheraton Hotel. Then she returned to pick up her baggage, realising that the danger in this zone had passed.

"It was then that she saw broken windows, victims leaving the airport, the elderly put on stretchers, and the emergency services arriving. She saw a part of the ceiling had collapsed. She said the two explosions were around the departure hall."

Other witnesses said they "felt shockwaves passing through the building".

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Armed police arrest two men near the metro station

Amid the horror of the terror attacks, glimpses of humanity have emerged.

A man has been hailed a hero on social media for pulling several people to safety.

A worker, only known as Alphonse, was wrapping bags at the check in desk when the explosion occurred.

He quickly rushed to help seven injured people.

Alphonse, who was wearing blood-smeared yellow trousers, described the moment he heard several bangs, which could have been a gunshot, and one that was much louder.

He said: "I saw people lying on the ground with a lot of blood who weren't moving any more."

The worker carried injured people into elevators to get them away from the devastating scene.

Praising him for his heroic actions, one person said: “People like Alphonse make the world beautiful."

The Belgian Red Cross has made an appeal for blood donations as hospital workers rush to treat scores of injured people.

Facebook has activated at 'safety check' status for people in the Brussels area to tell their loved ones they are safe.

The border between France and Belgium has been shut down following the attacks, with roads, rail and air services closed.

French authorities will bar members of the public without tickets or identification from entering transports hubs.

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A woman injured in the blast

Security at European institutions in Strasbourg have also been reinforced and security has been stepped up at nuclear sites across Belgium.

Mr Erjavec told a news conference that the diplomat, who he did not name, was hurt in the metro blast on his way to work.

He said the diplomat was being treated in hospital but his injuries were not life threatening.

David Cameron said security would now be stepped up at ports, airports and train stations.

He said: "We have held a COBRA meeting to make sure we are doing everything we can and we are enhancing security.

"These are difficult times, they are appalling terrorists and we will stand together to do everything we can.

"Although they attack our way of life and who we are, we will never let them win.

"We still have information coming in. If there is information that advises there is a direct threat to Britain we will raise the security threat level.

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Bomb explosion at Maelbeek metro in Brussels

"We will continue to keep the situation under review and make sure we do everything we can.

"We face a very real terrorist threat right across the different countries in Europe.

"It's too early to say (about British victims) but we will make announcements when we have hard information."

US President Barack Obama, speaking from Cuba, said: "We will do whatever it takes to support our friends and allies in Belgium and bring to justice those who are responsible.

"The world must unite. We must stand together regardless of nationality or race or faith and fight against the scourge of terrorism.

"We can and we will fight those who stand in the face of security around the world."

US Democrat leader Hilary Clinton has said in a statement: "Brussels attacks will only strengthen our resolve to stand together as allies and defeat terrorism and radical jihadism."

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The Eiffel Tower lit up in solidarity

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Belgian PM Charles Michel joined crowds gathered at the Place de la Bourse in Brussels tonigh

The Eiffel Tower has been lit up in red, yellow and black in solidarity for Belgium.

The Brussels government has invited the Belgian population to observe a minute of silence, tomorrow (Wednesday) at 12pm.

Belgian PM Charles Michel joined crowds gathered at the Place de la Bourse in Brussels tonight, to light a candle in memory of the victims.

A makeshift memorial has popped up in the heart of the city, with messages of condolence, outrage and love written in chalk on the pavement where the lit candles were placed.

Some among the crowd broke out into an impromptu rendition of John Lennon’s Imagine, while others stood in sombre silence as teams of armed police officers stood by in the wake of Tuesday’s terrorist atrocity.